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Human Hearing Beats the Fourier Uncertainty Principle

Tape Log Entry #219

This is a fascinating article about a brand new study in human auditory perception that is showing that there have been "naive" applications of mathematical formulas onto our understanding of human auditory perception.

I cannot claim to understand the math (the Fourier Unicertainty Principle lies at the heart of the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem, etc), but I can see that this study shows that the assumed limits of human auditory perception as figured by the Fourier Uncertainty Principle were too narrow - especially when expert listeners (a pro musician and an electronic music producer) are tested.

Some readers may realize that I'm posting this because of my concerns over the blanket acceptance of AB and ABX testing as the "gold standard" or human perceptual testing. In no way am I claiming that my hunch about AB testing is vindicated by this new paper, but I do think it points to some interesting new areas of research that could reveal more about the limits of human perception, and about the different dimensions of sound (time-based events and frequency based events) that we can perceive and how those dimensions interact.

More pointedly: until scientists devise and conduct more tests like this one, we may need to continue with a skeptical stance toward the application of mathamatical formulas and AB/ABX testing as the end-all of our windows into human perception.

As always, keep a really open mind! The Aesthetic Revolution will be beautiful.

I thank musician and all-around brilliant guy, Brad Williams, for pointing this article out to me.

>>> but I can see that this study shows that the assumed limits of human auditory perception as figured by the Fourier Uncertainty Principle were too narrow - especially when expert listeners (a pro musician and an electronic music producer) are tested<<<

What limits were so "figured"??? Very few people did believe that human auditory processing was FFT based, so these experiments are just confirming mainstream opinion. And what limits relevant to an ABX test would ever have been affected???

It really sounds to me as if you are using something you don't understand as an excuse to justify believing something that you want to believe is true....

Hey lucky Tape Op website forager: I've got an extra goodie bag from the Tape Op Party we held in March during SXSW. I don't have the full selection of swag, but I'll thrown in a couple of the SoundToys "special tin can of awesomeness" items which...

Our pal, Howard Massey, has a new book out, Behind The Glass Volume II. Volume I was a real treat, and Howard also co-wrote Geoff Emerick's excellent Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles. There's a ridiculous amount...

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Get This Issue!

Welcome to the Mar/Apr 2015 issue of Tape Op!

As we move through life, and add a few years to our experiences, it's only natural that we start losing friends along the way. We are all merely mortal. The last several months have been brutal. We lost Memphis'Ardent Studios stalwarts John Hampton and John Fry within a week of each other in December. Renowned Seedy Underbelly Studio owner, John Kuker, had just begun renovating Minnesota's legendary Pachyderm Studio before his unfortunate passing in February. On a note closer to home for me, Bill Gladfelter, one of my best intern/assistants ever (and later to become an ATR Services employee), passed away in November last year at 35 years old. All of this leaves me with a dark cloud hovering above, no matter how well other aspects of my life may be going. I'm not getting any younger either...

But one of the saddest losses was one of the most amazing people I have ever met. Ian Patrick McLagan, known to most as "Mac," was the keyboardist for the Small Faces, Faces, the Rolling Stones (notably on "Miss You"), Bonnie Raitt, and Billy Bragg. He also led his super fun Bump Band for years in Austin, Texas. When Laura Thurmond (our trusty ad rep) and I threw the first Tape Op Party during SXSW (an event since mothballed), one of our guests was an ebullient Mac. "I love Tape Op," he exclaimed, while seemingly bouncing off the walls with some sort of magical, music-fueled energy. Over the years we'd meet up during SXSW, both of us with too many things to do at once; but he was always smiling, happy, and ready with a hilarious comment. Thanks to this magazine, I have met many of my idols and it's always a pleasure, though sometimes a bitter surprise. The music business has a way of grinding people down if they let it. To meet one of your favorite musicians, and to find out how creative and positive they still are, is very special. Everyone that met Mac along the way knew he was someone to treasure. We miss you, my friend.

We are lucky to meet, love, share, and collaborate with others along the journey that life offers us. Don't take it for granted.